Professional Title/Position

Assistant Professor

Degrees and Education

• Caltech (2012)

Affiliations

• Caltech

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• formation and evolution of the Solar System
• dynamical evolution of exoplanets
• physical processes inherent to planetary interiors and atmospheres

Services, Roles, and Activities

• Local organizing committee (AAS/DDA) 2015 - chair

Professional Experience and Positions

• Harvard ITC Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard Center for Astrophysics Nov. 2012 - Jun. 2014
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur, Nice, France Jul. 2012 - Nov. 2012
• Graduate Research Assistant/Teaching Assistant, Caltech Sep. 2008 - Jun. 2012
• Visiting Scientist, Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur, Nice, France Feb. 2011 - Mar. 2011
• Research Assistant, UCO/Lick Observatory Mar. 2006 - Sep. 2008
• Supplemental Instructor, University of California, Santa Cruz Mar. 2006 - Jun. 2006
• Research Assistant, NASA Ames Research Center Jul. 2005 - Jan. 2006
• Referee for ApJ, ApJL, AJ, A&A, Nature, MNRAS, CMDA, PNAS, Earth Moon and Planets, panelist and external reviewer for various NASA and NSF programs

Candidate Statement

Having served as the chair of the LOC for the 2015 DDA in Pasadena, it would be my pleasure to serve on the general DDA committee. If elected, I will carry out my duties as an active member for a period of 2 years.

Professional Title/Position

Research Associate

Degrees and Education

• Paris Observatory (2013)

Affiliations

• Cornell University

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• celestial mechanics: Orbital resonances and secular dynamics
• planetary rings, satellites dynamics
• physics of planetary interiors and atmospheres

Services, Roles, and Activities

• Member of the DPS and DDA

Professional Experience and Positions

• Research associate at Cornell University (2014-present)
• Graduate student at Paris Observatory (2010-2013)
• Referee for A&A and Icarus

Candidate Statement

I always thoroughly enjoy DDA meetings, it is one of the best opportunities to discuss current problems on dynamics, share recent results and learn more about issues related to celestial mechanics. It would be my pleasure to be a member in the general DDA committee. As a member, I will work to maintain the great quality of the meeting, and encourage national and international young scientists to participate.

Professional Title/Position

Research Astronomer

Degrees and Education

• Ph.D., Solar System Dynamics, Queen Mary University of London (1998)
M.Sc. Maths of Nonlinear Models, Heriot-Watt Unversity, Edinburgh (1994) B.Sc. Applied Maths, National and Capodistrian University of Athens (1993)

Affiliations

• Armagh Observatory, College Hill, Armagh BT61 9DG, United Kingdom

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• the origin and evolution of Trojan asteroids
• dynamics of meteoroids and dust; effects on planetary environments
• dynamical evolution of planetary satellites
• measuring the solar system through time-critical phenomena (eclipses, appulses, occultations, transits)

My research has featured prominently in the media. During the 2015 DPS Meeting (Washington DC) I participated in a press conference (http://aas.org/media-press/archived-aas-press-conference-webcasts) and contributed a press release (https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/mercury-gets-meteoroid-shower-from-comet-encke) to promote my result that the meteoroid stream of comet Encke is responsible for modulating Mercury's calcium exosphere.

My earlier discovery of a cluster of Trojans at the orbit of Mars was similarly publicised during the 2013 DPS (Denver, CO; press release at http://spaceref.com/asteroids/an-asteroid-pile-up-in-the-orbit-of-mars.html). In 2011, I identified 2010 SO16 as a long-lived Earth horseshoe asteroid (still the longest-lived Earth coorbital at the time of writing this) and a press release was issued by the UK's Royal Astronomical Society. On all these occasions, the stories were reproduced on numerous fora across the world wide web. I am also involved in a proposal with Craig Agnor and Carl Murray (QMUL) to bring a DDA meeting to London in 2017 or later.

Services, Roles, and Activities

I am a Fellow of the UK Royal Astronomical Society, a full Member of the American Astronomical Society (DPS & DDA), also a Member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and of the International Astronomical Union Commission 7: Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy.

I regularly act as reviewer for papers submitted to Science, Icarus, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Journal of Geophysical Research, Geophysical Research Letters and others. In 2014, I was awarded a "Certificate of Excellence in Reviewing" by the Editorial Board of Icarus. I have also reviewed grant proposals in the UK and internationally, including a number of Solar System Workings programme applications in 2014. During the 2013 European Planetary Science Congress in London, UK, I organised and chaired the "Asteroid Dynamics" session. I have written press releases issued by the Armagh Observatory and occasionally by other organisations (eg Division of Planetary Sciences of the AAS, Royal Astronomical Society in the UK). I also give talks to amateur societies and organise public observing sessions using the Observatory's historical Grubb 10-inch refractor.

Professional Experience and Positions

• 03/2001 - present: Research Astronomer, Armagh Observatory, UK
• 03/2000 - 03/2001: Research Associate, Orbit & Attitude Determination & Control of Small Satellites, University Surrey, UK
• 10/1998 - 03/2000: Research Associate, Theoretical Astronomy, Astronomy Unit, Queen Mary University of London, UK

Candidate Statement

None of us would be working in this field if we were not convinced of the importance of dynamics in answering the fundamental science questions in astronomy. As a planetary scientist and a DDA member for over 15 years, I have been impressed - but never surprised - by its enormous contribution to understanding our own solar system, my main area of research.

But I feel that dynamics can make a still bigger impact (read "more projects and more job opportunities for dynamicists") if we bolster our lines of communication to the other disciplines. A recent personal experience has been the Mercury-related item I describe under the "Research Area" section above. That story began in 2009 during a workshop I helped organise in Graz, Austria under a European Union grant that brought together experts in planetary exospheres and cometary dust dynamics. The result was - apart from a nice paper in GRL(!) - that we now know something we didn't, namely that meteoroid streams can affect exospheres in a measurable way. If elected, I will work to foster and promote cross-discipline linkages and actions to help our field and its practitioners realise their full potential.

Professional Title/Position

Postdoctoral Fellow

Degrees and Education

• Ph.D., Cornell University

Affiliations

• Centre for Planetary Sciences, University of Toronto at Scarborough
• Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• dynamics of irregular satellite debris
• stability of exoplanet systems
• analytical and numerical methods
• chaos

Professional Experience and Positions

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre for Planetary Sciences, University of Toronto
• Buttrick-Crippen Teaching Fellow, Cornell University
• Referee for ApJ, AJ, MNRAS, Icarus, panelist for various NASA programs

Candidate Statement

The DDA is a smaller community than most other AAS divisions. This is partly what makes DDA great, as meetings are much more interactive. But this also demands greater care and attention in order to maintain DDA’s research excellence and diversity. To this end, I would work to reinvigorate DDA’s galactic dynamics component and try to find ways to generate cross-discipline discussions at meetings. DDA is small enough that such efforts could be effectively organized. I would also work to attract outstanding young researchers to DDA and to continue improving the division’s gender balance.

Professional Title/Position

Postdoctoral Research Associate

Degrees and Education

• Ph.D., Planetary Sciences, University of Arizona (2013)

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• dynamical history of the outer solar system
• dynamical structure of the Kuiper belt
• related small body populations
• dynamics of exoplanets

Professional Experience and Positions

• Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Arizona (2015-present)
• CITA National Fellow, University of British Columbia (2013-2015)

Candidate Statement

Candidate Statement: I always look forward to the DDA meeting each year because of the variety of interesting dynamical problems explored and the fact that the small meeting size allows plenty of time for discussion (and no parallel sessions!). If elected, I would focus on maintaining the high quality of the DDA meetings by making sure they remain affordable to attend and by encouraging early career researchers to join the DDA.

Professional Title/Position

Assistant Professor, Physics

Degrees and Education

• Ph.D., University of Michigan (2007)
• B.S., B.A, Western Illinois University (1999)

Affiliations

• Department of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• dark matter
• galactic dynamics
• dwarf galaxies
• the Local Group

Professional Experience and Positions

• Assistant Professor of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University, 2013 - present
• Hubble Fellow, Harvard College Observatory, 2010-2013
• Postdoctoral Research Associate, Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, 2007-2010

Candidate Statement

I study dark matter, thus far via optical imaging, spectroscopy and statistical/dynamical modelling of dwarf galaxies. I wish to serve on the DDA committee.

Professional Title/Position

Principal Scientist

Degrees and Education

• A.B. in Physics, Harvard (1980)
• Ph.D. in Astronomy, University of California, Berkeley (1987)

Affiliations

• Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• Solar System dynamics
• comets, the Oort Cloud, and the Kuiper Belt
• planetary rings
• impact cratering
• planet formation and evolution

Services, Roles, and Activities

• voyager imaging team associate 1986-1989
• member of Cassini imaging team 1990-present
• member of AAS, AAAS, and AGU
• DDA Nominating Committee, 2001
• DDA Committee, 2006-2008
• head of Local Organizing Committee for DDA meeting in Boulder, 2008
• Brouwer Award Committee, 2015-present
• member of SwRI’s CLOE team of NASA Lunar Science Institute (NLSI) and successor ISET team of the Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI),2009-present
• instructor on chaos in SwRI’s asteroid orbital integration module for Summer Science Program, 2009-present
• contributor to Astrotweeps Twitter account

Professional Experience and Positions

I have worked at SwRI since 1999. For most of 2006, I was an academic visitor at Queen Mary, University of London.

Candidate Statement

The DDA meeting is smaller and more relaxed than most conferences. The friendly atmosphere is great, but sometimes the DDA feels like a well-kept secret. I’d like to explore all avenues to make sure that potentially interested scientists know about the meeting and feel welcome if they attend. Although exciting discoveries on extrasolar planets have been a welcome new topic of discussion at recent DDA meetings, the meeting’s focus has, overall, narrowed in recent years. Our bylaws state that we seek to advance all aspects of dynamical astronomy, including stellar and galactic dynamics and the dynamics of the interstellar medium, but these topics have been little discussed of late. We need to foster cross-disciplinary research, so I welcome the topical sessions on astrometry and disk/ring systems planned for the 2016 meeting. I support the DDA’s initiative to select the Brouwer Award winner in a more inclusive way. Finally, I would like the DDA to explore new forms of outreach, such as publicizing new results in dynamics on social media and recording talks at our meetings so they can be viewed on the web.

Professional Title/Position

Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy; Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences

Degrees and Education

• Ph.D., Astronomy and Space Sciences, Cornell University (1999)

Affiliations

• University of California, Los Angeles

Research Areas, Topics, and Interests

• spin and orbital dynamics
• planetary physics
• geodesy
• astrometry

Services, Roles, and Activities

• 50+ university and community service positions, 2004-present
• Secretary, IAU Division F (Planetary Systems and Bioastronomy), 2015-present
• Chair, Science Program Committee, 2008 DPS meeting
• Member, Brouwer Award Selection Committee, 2007-2009

Professional Experience and Positions

• Professor, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, 2013-present
• Professor, Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, UCLA, 2013-present
• Associate Professor, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, 2010-2013
• Associate Professor, Dept. of Earth and Space Sciences, UCLA, 2009-2013
• Associate Professor, Dept. of Astronomy, Cornell University, 2008
• Assistant Professor, Dept. of Astronomy, Cornell University, 2004-2008
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Caltech, 2001-2003
• Postdoctoral Research Associate, Arecibo Observatory, 1999-2001
• Graduate Research Assistant, Dept. of Astronomy, Cornell University, 1994-1999
• Erasmus Fellow, Electromagnetics Institute, Technical University of Denmark, 1993

Candidate Statement

Dynamical Astronomy has a glorious past and a promising future. The DDA is an important catalyst for members to exchange ideas and to nurture collaborations. If elected, I will assist the Chair in running the Division and Division meetings, address the concerns of national and international members in consultation with the Committee, and strive to enhance the visibility of the Division.